Wynonna Judd Lends Loving Arms to Kentucky Fire Victims

Wynonna Judd traveled to Nashville this week to visit with a father and daughter who lost nine members of their family in a deadly fire.

On Jan. 30, a fire erupted in the home of LaRae and Chad Watson in Greenville, Kentucky. The accidental blaze took the lives of LaRae and eight of the couple's nine children and put Chad and their remaining daughter, 11-year-old Kylie, in the hospital. Upon hearing the news, Judd, a fellow Kentuckian, immediately contacted a caseworker at the hospital to arrange a visit and spent over an hour with the family.

Judd is no stranger to tragedy. In 2012, she and husband Michael “Cactus” Moser were riding motorcycles in South Dakota when a horrifying accident took Moser's leg. It took eight months for him to walk again. Judd has said that the process was an "emotional ride," but it seems that she is using her experience to comfort the Watson family during this terrible time.

“She spent well over an hour with us, hugging every person in the room, and sharing so many words of wisdom.” says the family's pastor, Adam Brown. “She told us about the tragedies in her own life. Somehow, she just related so well to the sadness that we had. It was like having a mother hen in the room. Everyone just grew so close to her so fast.”

The outpouring of support for the Watson family from the country music community has been strong. Along with Judd's personal visit, the Band Perry has committed to pay for the burial of LaRae and the eight children who passed away, as well as all hotel costs for those staying in Nashville to support Kylie and Chad while they are hospitalized at Vanderbilt Medical Center.